Street and station indicator.



No. 870,737. PATENTED NOV. 12, 1907.

G. A. MYERS.

STREET AND STATION INDICATOR. APPLICATION rum) NOV. a, 1906.

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'wvemtoz char/6; ,4 Mars PATENTED NOV. 12, 1907.

0. A. MYERS.

STREET AND STATION INDICATOR.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 8, 1906.

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wkfiiasx Q a I m muH UNITED STATES,

PATENT' onrron.

CHARLES A. MYERS, OF NIAGARAFALLS, NEW YORK.-

STREET AND STATION INDICATOR.

of the United States, residing at Niagara Falls, in the --countyof Niagara and State of New York, have invented certain new'and useful Improvements in Street and Station Indicators; and I do declare the following to, be a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. My invention is an improved street and station indicator for electric railway cars, and it consists in the construction, combination'and arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings,Figure l is an elevation of a street and station indicator embodying my improvements; Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the same; Fig. 3 is a detail View of the detent for locking one of the operating armatures in inoperative position, and releasing the other armature so that it may be operated by the electro-magnet; Fig. 4-is a detailelevation showing one of the dogs and its coacting spring; and Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the'electric circuit closer for obtaining current from the trolley wire for operating the indicator.

The casing 1, which incloses the indicating mechanism may be of any suitable form and is provided in its front side with a glazed opening 2, through which ;the names of the streets or stations on the apron 3 are successively exposed by the movement of said apron. This apron is made of thin sheet steel or other metal, is elastic and constitutes a spring v hich when released will coil upon itself. The said apron is provided near its side edges with openings 4 to receive operating studs 5, which project from a pair of rollers 6. Said rollers havetheir shafts 7 mounted in hearings in the ends of the casing and are disposed near the front of the casing and are spaced apart so that the intermediate portion of the apron is stretched between them and maintained in a straight line, as shown in Fig. 2. The end portions of the apron extend into cylindrical casings, 8 through openings 9 in said casings, and the ends of the said apron coil uponthemselves so that they become compactly disposed in said cylindrical casings. As the aprr-a is moved in either direction by the rotation of the rollers 6, one end of the same willbecome coiled in one of the casings 8, while the other end will become uncoiled in the other casing 8, aswill, be readily understood. Said casings 8 are connected together by bars 10, and are provided at their ends with radially-disposed ears 11, which bear against the ends of the casing 1, and are secured thereto by screws,studs or, other suitable devices indicated areas of the openings 9 to permit the insertion of the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 8. 1906- Serial No. 342.542-

Patented Nov. 12, 1907.

coiled ends of the apron in said casings or their removal therefrom, and may be moved in the opposite direction to nearly close said openings and serve as guides for the apron. The said slide covers have their outer ends extended, as at 15, and attached to rods 16. Said rods may be seated or unseated from' openings 17 in the ends of the casing 1, and when seated in. said openings may be secured therein by means of turn-buttons, or other suitable devices 18. On one end of each roller shaft 7 is a pinion, 19, fixed thereto to rotate therewith. I

A gear 20, which is mounted on a shaft 21 engages the pinions 19 and on the outer side of the said gear 20 is' secured a ratchet wheel 22.

A pair of rock-arms 23 are pivotally-mounted on the shaft 21 and extend in opposite directions therefrom.

The said rock-arms carry dogs 24 to engage opposite sides of the ratchet wheel 22. The said dogs are provided with cam faces 25, 26, and the said rock-arms carry springs 27, the free ends of which bear against the cam faces 25 or 26 of the dogs. When the spring bears against the cam face 25 of one of..the dogs, said dog will be maintained in engagement with one side of the ratchet wheel 22. The dog on the opposite side of said ratchet wheel must be set out of engagement with said ratchet wheel, and will be held in such position by its spring 27, which willbear against its cam face 26. Levers 28 are here shown as fulcrumed at 29 and as connected to the rock-arms 23 by links 30.

Springs 31 are here shown as connected to the rockarms to move them together with the dogs which they both sets of said springs for the purposes of this speci The springs 33 in the form of my inventionhere shown, not only serve to coact withthe springs 31, but also serve'to direct the movement of the armafication.

tures to facilitate the operation thereof. The armaturesmay be operated by an electro-magnet 34, which is here shown as supported on one side of the casing 1.

in operative relation to the armatures by means of a bracket 35. The electro-magnet may be supported by any-suitable means and I do not limit myself in this particular. A detent'device, which is here shown as a slide 36, operating in guides 37 on the rear side of the casing 1, is employed for locking one of the armatures against operation, while releasing the other armature, so that it may be operated by the electro-magis disposed in the path of the other armature to prevent The said slide has openings 38 to clear the arthe operation thereof, as shown'in Fig. 1. The electro-magnet is momentarily energized just after leaving each street or station by means of a circuit-maker.

and breaker, which coacts with a trolley wire to supmentarily engages the latter to send a current through the electro-magnet, and cause the latter to operate one of the armatures.

The action of the armature imparted thereto by the electro-magnet causes the lever 28 connected to said armature and the link-rod to move the rock-arm 23 connected to said link-rod against the tension of the springs 31, 33, so that said rock-arm draws its'dog 24 idly on the ratchet wheel 22 without imparting movement to said ratchet wheel. The instant that the electro-magnet becomes deenergized, the springs 31, 33, .return the armature, its lever 28, link rod 30, and rock-arm 23 to their normal positions, and such movement of the rock-arm 23 causes its dog 24 which'is in engagement with the ratchet wheel 22 to impart a partial rotation to said ratchet wheel, as will be understood. This movement of the ratchet wheel causes the gear 20 to turn therewith and said gear being in engagement with the pinions l9, whicli are connected to the rollers -6, said rollers are turned a sufficient distance to move the apron 3 so as to display the name of the next street or station through. the opening 2. It will be understood that after reaching the end of the line and before making the return run, the detent device 36 must be set so as to cause the last-operated armature to be locked and'to release the'other armature. The dog which is connected to the inoperative armature must be also set in the position shown in Fig. 4,

out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 22.

To check the movement of the rock-arms 23, which carry the operating dogs, I provide cylinders 44 and dashers or pistons 45. The said cylinders are secured on the casing 1 and each is openat one end. The pistons or dashers are attached to the rock-arms, and as the rock-arms move by the action of the springs, said pistons or dashers enter said cylinders, compress the air therein and serve to cushion the rock-arms and to check the movement thereof, as will be understood. To enable the rollers 6 to be turned manually in ad justing the apron, I provide a knob 46, which is indicated in a dotted circle in Fig. 1. Said knob is atareas? tached to the shaft 21 to which the gear 20 and ratchet wheel 22 are secured and which turns with said gear and ratchet wheel.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, thev construction and operation of the invention will be readily understood without requiring a more extended errplana; tion.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention, as defined by the appended 'claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is,

1. In combination with the driving element of a station indicator, an electro-magnet, independently-operated armatures', means actuated by the respective armatur'es and coacting with the driving element to move the latter 'rocking' arms having pawls to engage opposite sides of the ratchet wheel, an electro-magnet, independently-operated armatures connected to the respective rocking arms to actuate the latter, and means to lock either of the armatures against movement and'release the other for move-' ment'b'y the electro-magnet, substantially as described.

3. In combination with the driving gear of a station indicator" and a ratchet wheel revoluble with said gear, rocking arms having pawls to engage opposite sides of the ratchet wheel, an electro-magnet, independently-operated armatures connected to the respective rocking arms to move the-latter in one direction, springs to move said rocking arms in'the reverse direction, and means to lock either of the armatures against movement and release the other for movement by the electro-magnet, substantially as described. I

- 4. In combination with the driving gear of a station indicator and aratchet wheel revoluble with said gear, rocking arms having pawls to engage opposite sides of the ratchet wheel, an electro-magnet, independently-operated armatures connected to the respective rocking arms to move the latter in one direction, springs to move said rocking arms in thereverse direction, means to lock either of the. armatures against movement and release the other for movement by the. electro-magnet, plungers carried by said rocking arms, and fixed cylinders, each open at one end for the reception of one of said plungers to cushion the strokes of said rocking arms, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES A. MYERS.

Witnesses BENJ'. GOODMAN, CLINTON W. JOHNSON. 

